In a significant ruling, the Supreme Court on Tuesday sided with the Biden administration, allowing it to withhold federal family planning funds from Oklahoma. The dispute arose after Oklahoma refused to provide patients with a hotline number that offers neutral information about abortion, a requirement under the administration’s regulations.

The court’s brief order noted that Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, and Neil Gorsuch supported granting Oklahoma’s application, but the majority did not provide reasoning for rejecting the state’s appeal.

Under the federal law known as Title X, while state funding cannot be used for abortion, the Biden administration argues that it can mandate that providers ensure patients have access to comprehensive information. Upon taking office, the administration issued a regulation requiring states to offer non-directive counseling to pregnant patients on options such as prenatal care, adoption, and abortion, replacing a Trump-era rule that barred any abortion referrals.

In 2022, Oklahoma initially complied with these requirements, receiving $4.5 million in funding. However, following the Supreme Court’s ruling overturning Roe v. Wade, Oklahoma reversed its position. It refused to provide the required hotline number, leading to the termination of its federal funding for 2023.

The state had previously challenged the regulation and filed a separate lawsuit to regain access to Title X funds. A federal judge in Oklahoma and the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against the state, leading Oklahoma to appeal to the Supreme Court.

Oklahoma’s legal team argued that the Department of Health and Human Services overstepped its authority by imposing new conditions on Title X funding. They emphasized that the funding supports “critical public health services” across the state and warned of the devastating impact of losing these services.

However, Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar, representing the Biden administration, defended the regulation, stating that Congress routinely conditions federal grants on compliance with agency regulations, a practice repeated by the courts.